Tauranga Eastern Link Piling Crew Move On To Mangatawa

Having completed the first stage of piling for the
Domain Road interchange, the piling crew have moved to the
northwest and are now piling for the Mangatawa interchange
as part of the NZ Transport Agency’s (NZTA) Tauranga
Eastern Link project.

The Mangatawa interchange,
which is located between Te Maunga and Bruce Road, will
provide future access to Papamoa (via Sandhurst Drive) and
to Mangatawa.

NZTA’s Bay of Plenty state highways
manager, Brett Gliddon, says that the interchange will open
to traffic at the completion of the project in 2016.

“A total of 40 piles will be driven into the ground,
at different stages, to depths of up to 50 metres. The first
stage is well underway at Abutment A. The crew will then
move across to Abutment B.”

The piling crew are
operating from 7.30am to 6.00pm Monday to Saturday. Nearby
residents will experience some noise disturbance during this
time.

Piling for the Kaituna River Bridge and East
Coast Main Trunk Rail Bridge at Paengaroa is now
complete.

The
four-lane Tauranga Eastern Link will run from Te Maunga
(near Baypark Stadium) in Tauranga to the existing junction
of State Highways 2 and 33 (the Rotorua and Whakatane
highways) near Paengaroa. It will be made up of 17km of new
road and an upgrade of six kilometres of existing highway.
The new highway is expected to open to traffic in 2016.

The Government has identified seven essential state
highway projects linked to New Zealand’s economic
prosperity. Called the roads of national significance, or
RoNS for short, the NZTA is charged with delivering this
programme of state highway improvements within the next 10
years. The RoNS programme represents one of New Zealand’s
biggest ever infrastructure investments and is a key part of
the Government’s National Infrastructure Plan and
Government’s Policy Statement for transport.

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